PRAYER JOURNEY TO IMPACT ATHENS-LIMESTONE COUNTY​ STUDENTS

​​Friendship United Methodist Church believes that their congregation should make an impact outside of the church walls. They also believe that prayer works. Putting those two beliefs together, Friendship Church invites...

the community to join them and make an impact on the lives of Athens City and Limestone County students. Friendship Church will embark on a Pray 40 Days Journey beginning February 4th. As part of that journey, the church has chosen two projects they hope will engage the entire community. Both of these projects can make an impact on generational poverty.

Project 1: Provide an Outdoor Agricultural Learning Center for Spark Academy at Cowart Elementary School Jennifer Kennedy, STEM Specialist at Cowart Elementary’s SPARK Academy, was asked what she would wish for the school if she could have anything. Mrs. Kennedy has a longstanding dream of having three raised garden beds on school grounds, one for each grade level. Her goal would be to teach the students to plant the seeds and nurture them, transplant the seedlings to the raised beds, tend the gardens, and harvest fresh food they have grown themselves.

With hoop houses added, the beds could be used year around. Mrs. Kennedy envisions having a chef come and cook with the students using the produce harvested from the gardens.

With a mission of fighting generational poverty, this project fits right into Friendship’s vision.

Project 2: EVERY Needy Child, In EVERY School, ALL of Limestone County Nearly 6,000 students in the Limestone County and Athens City school systems live below poverty levels. The goal of this project is to provide simple personal care items most of us take for granted, such as brushes and combs, soap, shampoo and conditioner, deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrushes, and more. According to counselors at the Athens City and Limestone County Boards of Education, these items are truly needed and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) does not provide these items. Simple items like those mentioned can help increase a student’s self-­‐esteem, which can a make a difference in future success.